God Is Going To Give You More Than You Can HAndle

I’m sure you’ve heard people tell you, “God won’t give you more than you can handle!” Sometimes this is declared in a, “I’m trying to reassure you and I don’t know what to say” kind of way, and other times it’s delivered in a more dismissive, “Stop complaining and buck up; deal with your problems like everyone else” tone of voice. No matter the intention, that motivational quote isn’t found anywhere in the Bible and the truth is God will absolutely give you more than you can handle.

Wait a minute-what?! How can that be true from a supposedly loving God? Kids aren’t supposed to handle their parent’s divorce. Parents were never meant to handle a child’s diagnosis or death alone. Victims of abuse (emotional, sexual, physical) don’t have to turn inward and suffer until they can muster the strength to handle what happened to them. 

Lest you think this is the perfect excuse for blaming someone else/something else (or even God!) for your pain, this isn’t a billboard for victim-hood. 

In our current world chaos, uncertainty in school, the economy, politics, and our daily lives, my vision is short sighted and I feel certain some days is that the light at the end of the tunnel is a speeding train rather than the light of freedom. If you feel refreshed, stress-free, your energy is abundant and you organized your clothes by color because you had nothing else to do, I’m positive I don’t know you and I’m jealous (although I question whether you exist at all). 

2020 is a rash all over your already cellulite ridden thighs. You already had some problems, but they could be covered up and ignored. Now, they hurt and itch all the time, begging for attention, and the issues you used to have are now accentuated by the new ones. Lovely.  

Between 2019 and 2020, I had way too many burdens to handle. Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse I herniated two discs requiring spine surgery, all the trauma I had experienced was presenting in ugly ways and making marriage hard, and our oldest child had a grand mal seizure at Starbucks. Out of nothing but love, I had many different people say to me, “God doesn’t give you more than you can handle so he must think you are pretty strong!” I am so grateful they are wrong. 

I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13

Friends, God gives us more than we can handle because he wants us to depend on him as our resource. Cling to him because he is the only safety and comforter. His plan of action is the best one. His timing is the right one. God is good, all the time. He doesn’t give our loved one cancer, doesn’t cause our husband’s affair, and doesn’t create a worldwide pandemic of a virus. He also doesn’t stop them when he is using for good, the thing intended by the enemy for evil. He loves to shepherd us, delights in guiding us, and is jealous of a relationship with us. 

So let yourself rest a little more tonight, knowing that you, by yourself, will never solve everything heavy on your heart. But with him, infinitely more is possible. 

Isaiah 41:10 - Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.